Being good to your skin is a full time job that begins with a gentle cleanse and continues with moisturizing, protecting and nourishing it. Somewhere in-between, it is important to exfoliate your skin to make the rest of your regimes work effectively. The age old method of grabbing your nearest scrub and giving yourself a quick two minutes with it, is no longer the best way. A quick chat with our favourite people in skincare tells us, there is more to it this science.

"There are two kinds of exfoliation- chemical and mechanical." informs Dr. Rashmi Shetty, leading cosmetic physician in India. Mechanical exfoliation involves sloughing off the dead cells physically and chemical exfoliation is about loosening the bonds between dead cells, so they fall off easily. Scrubs are all about mechanical exfoliation while fruit and enzyme peels are good examples of chemical exfoliation.

No matter how you choose to remove the top dead layer to reveal a youthful glow, we have expert tips from around the world to make the best of your at-home skin conditioning ritual.

Dry Exfoliation:

"Getting the surface of your skin right, is the first step to achieving glowing skin. So the most important product to get right is your scrub." declares Vaishalay Patel, UK- based facialist to stars including Meg Ryan and Gwyneth Paltrow.

"The best way to get optimum results is to apply the scrub directly on dry skin first. Rub the scrub all over with gentle circular movements, then add water and repeat." advices Patel who believes exfoliating directly on dry skin helps remove more dead skin than otherwise. A word of caution- do not try this on severely dry or sensitive skin.

"Take two tablespoons of chopped pineapple and three teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil. Blend these ingredients together well and leave on your face for 15 minutes. Then rinse off with warm water." says Peck

Micro Exfoliation:

"The grains size in your scrub for your back, cannot be the same as the one for your face." says Dr.Shetty who is a firm believer in treating your face gently. "The grain size is very important. It is a sin to use bigger grains on your face." she continues and makes us get rid of the several apricot scrubs in our cabinet.

Dr. Shetty recommends going for products with the finest granules for the face. Once you have the scrub, dot it on your face and use the balls of your fingers, in circular motions. Vogue.in recommends the Kiehl's Epidermal Re-texturizing Micro Dermabrasion Scrub. A fool proof tip when you go shopping for your scrub- " Your scrub should never scratch your skin, cause any friction or abrasion." cautions Dr. Shetty.